Telecom

Vietnam’s Special Envoy Visits Prime Minister Dion Ngute Seeking for Solution to Nexttel Conflict

Vietnam’s Special Envoy Visits Prime Minister Dion Ngute Seeking for Solution to Nexttel Conflict
Monday, 06 May 2019 19:41

Today, Vietnamese Prime Minister’s Special Envoy, Mr. Nguyen Quoc Cuong, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, officially paid a visit to Cameroon and met with Prime Minister Dion Ngute in an effort to enhance bilateral cooperative relationship, and importantly to seek for appropriate solutions for the serious conflict at Viettel Cameroon SA (operator of the Nexttel mobile network). On this occasion, Prime Minister’s Special Envoy and Deputy Foreign Minister Nguyen Quoc Cuong met with Cameroon Prime Minister Dion Ngute to give a letter from Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc, exchanging and working with many Ministries and Authorities of Cameroon. This is an urgent diplomatic action from the Government of Vietnam since Mr. Baba Danpullo and Bestcam, the Cameroon partner in the VCR joint venture have taken many illegal actions to prevent Vietnamese people - the party contributing 70% of the joint stock capital- to go to work for branches of VCR joint ventures throughout Cameroon from 11/2018.

It seems that the issue of Nexttel is the most concerned content in the program of the Special Envoy of the Prime Minister of Vietnam. In fact, Joint Venture VCR of Viettel Group in Cameroon is only one of four direct investment projects worth more than 1 billion USD of Vietnamese enterprises in this country. The issue of Nexttel concerns the Government of Vietnam because the resolution of Nexttel's difficulties will help not to slow down other enterprises of Vietnam want to expand cooperation with Cameroon in other areas such as hydropower and hotels, cement, agriculture, food processing, etc.

Mr. Nguyen Quoc Cuong said that Vietnam's Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc paid special attention to resolving conflict peacefully at Viettel Cameroon SA Joint Venture in the context of attaching importance to cooperation between the two countries and preserving friendly relations. Good tradition between the people of Vietnam and the people of Cameroon. He also affirmed: "The Government of Vietnam is responsible for protecting Vietnamese businesses abroad, including the investment of Viettel in Cameroon, worth up to 210 billion FCFA, calling on the Government of Cameroon to express Viettel Global's foreign investment protection points and actions, in accordance with Cameroon's laws and bilateral agreements and international commitments of each party ”.

Many international and local analysts believe that Viettel Global's withdrawal from Cameroon will leave very bad consequences for Cameroon's investment environment, when Viettel Global has succeeded in 13 investment markets throughout the world from Asia, Latin America and Africa. In particular, the cause of the withdrawal from the market stems from the Cameroonian Government does not help protect foreign investors against the blatant law violations of local partners Bestcam to annex foreign partners accounting for up to 70% of investment capital, taking advantage of the investment from technology, know-how and finance of foreign investors.

Besides of the above-mentioned foreign direct investment, Vietnam has import deficit from Cameroon, with the total trading turnover reaching US$227,5 million (as of 2017). Viettel’s telecommunication joint venture alone has created more than 100,000 direct and indirect jobs for Cameroon people. Viettel’s social welfare programs are greatly contributing to the growth of Cameroon’s people and the nation, of which 15,000 local people have been given free medical check-up. These are many huge benefits that cannot be ruined by a single tycoon’s covetous attempt that obviously affect the common benefits of the Cameroon people.

In addition, if the VCR works well, it is also a bridge to help the Government of Cameroon access new technologies to develop other services based on the internet and the digital economy by standing behind VCR as Viettel Telecommunications Group - one of 30 companies. The world's largest telecommunications company with 90 million subscribers, and operates in 13 countries. These are the great benefits that the Government of Cameroon needs to mention between protecting the financier and on the other hand is the great common interest of the community and the people of Cameroon.

Commenting on the prospect of a high-level bilateral meeting, Mr. Do Manh Hung, General Director of Viettel Global said: “We hope the Cameroonian government will fully understand Vietnam’s goodwill and considers the essential benefits of the Cameroon people as dealing with Nexttel’s disputes. Through diplomatic path and protection policy of foreign investment in compliance with Cameroon law and international practice, as well as the agreement between the two joint ventures is the most reasonable way to handle conflict, before the The case must be brought to the international court, where it will certainly leave bad consequences for the investment environment in Cameroon.

The visit of the Special Envoy to the Prime Minister of Vietnam will continue until May 7, 2019, in addition to working with the Ministry of Foreign Relations, Mr. Nguyen Quoc Cuong is expected to have meetings related to trade cooperation, Investment, agriculture and telecommunications with SEM Minister of Posts and Telecommunications Minette Libom Li Likeng, Justice Minister SEM Esso Laurent, SEM Issa Minister of Employment and Vocational Training Tchiroma Bakary, Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development SEM Mbairope Gabriel village, SEM Senate President Marcel Niat Njifenji, President of SEM Congress Cavayé Yéguié Djibrin.

35283 nexttel Telecom Press release DFM Visit French version 2019May06 FINAL

On the same topic
Nigeria plans to retrain ex-cybercriminals for careers in digital security and tech. A new academy will launch with 500 trainees, expanding later...
Reliable, high-capacity international connectivity is crucial for driving economic growth, enabling digital services, and promoting regional...
• Morocco to build 500 MW green-powered data center in Dakhla to boost cloud infrastructure• Part of Digital Morocco 2030, aiming for data sovereignty and...
• Cameroon and Chad plan to launch free mobile roaming by August 11, following a joint coordination meeting in N'Djamena• The move revives a stalled CEMAC...
Most Read
01

• Inflation within the West African Economic and Monetary Union (UEMOA) fell to a two-year low of 0....

UEMOA: Inflation Drops to 0.6% in May, Driven by Lower Food Prices
02

• Qatar Airways and Kenya Airways establish strategic agreement, introducing a third daily flight be...

Qatar Airways Expands its Network in Africa, Building Presence in Kigali, Johannesburg, and Nairobi
03

• Interbank volumes rose 18.7% in May, while rates declined across the market• The BCEAO cut its mai...

WAEMU Sees Easing Conditions on Regional Interbank Market
04

• EY is preparing to leave Francophone Sub-Saharan Africa by 2026• The exit could unlock $500 m...

EY’s Exit Creates $1bn Opportunity in Francophone Africa Consulting Market
05

As cybersecurity asserts itself as a pillar of digital sovereignty in West Africa, technology-free z...

Cybersecurity Key to Côte d'Ivoire's Tech Future– VITIB's N'ZI
Enter your email to receive our newsletter

Ecofin Agency provides daily coverage of nine key African economic sectors: public management, finance, telecoms, agribusiness, mining, energy, transport, communication, and education.
It also designs and manages specialized media, both online and print, for African institutions and publishers.

SALES & ADVERTISING

regie@agenceecofin.com 
Tél: +41 22 301 96 11 
Mob: +41 78 699 13 72
Média kit : Download

EDITORIAL
redaction@agenceecofin.com

More information
Team
Publisher

ECOFIN AGENCY

Mediamania Sarl
Rue du Léman, 6
1201 Geneva
Switzerland

 

Ecofin Agency is a sector-focused economic news agency, founded in December 2010. Its web platform was launched in June 2011. ©Mediamania.

 
 

Please publish modules in offcanvas position.